Just a day hike, but it’s been slow on here so I thought I’d post this.
I took advantage of the cool weather in San Diego to tick off a few peaks of the Sierra Club SDC100 list that I’ve been working on the last couple of years. The hike was about 10 miles with quite a bit of elevation loss/gain. At one point there’s a ~1000′ loss in 0.5 miles immediately followed by a ~1500′ gain in about 1.25 miles. It felt like one of the tougher ones, but maybe I’m just out of shape.
Besides the short jeep trails at the start and end, it’s all typical San Diego desert cross country hiking: rocky, loose, and full of sharp pointy things. The route starts in the McCain Valley Conservation Area near the community of Boulevard, about 1:20 drive from San Diego. From the car, I headed up a dirt road and a use trail up Mt. Tule, then down toward Carrizo Gorge to Groan BM, down some more, then up to Gasp BM and back to the car. Once down the east side of Mt. Tule, there was no sign of other hikers besides the infrequent entries to the summit registers. No use trails, footprints, or trash. There’s great views of the “impossible railroad” and the Anza Borrego desert, weird rock formations, a variety of cactus, and palm groves. If you’re looking for a challenge this winter and want to get away from the crowds, think about this one or any of the desert peaks on the SDC list.
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